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Austria - Compensation & Benefit Legislation

CAPITAL

Vienna

 

CLIMATE

Temperate, continental and cloudy. Cold winters with frequent rain in the lowlands and snow in the mountains. The summers are cool with occasional showers.

 

LANGUAGES

German

 

LEGAL SYSTEM

Civil law system with Roman law origin. Judicial review of legislative acts by the Constitutional Court. Austria has separate administrative and civil/penal supreme courts. Austria has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction.

 

CURRENCY

Euro (1 USD = 1.07090 EUR as of June 1, 2002)

 

AUSTRIA - COST-OF-LIVING

ERI's Relocation Assessor is a recommended source for cost-of-living data.

 

AUSTRIA - EMBASSY/CONSULATES

U.S. Embassy at Vienna

Boltzmanngasse 16

1091 Vienna, Austria

Telephone: [43] (1) 313-3390

Fax: [43] (1) 310-0682

http://www.usembassy-vienna.at/

 

Consular Section

Gartenbaupromenade 2

4th Floor, A-1010

Vienna, Austria

Telephone: [43] (1) 313-3900

Fax: [43] (1) 513-4351

 

Embassy of Austria at Washington D.C.

3524 International Court N.W.

Washington D.C. 20008-3035

Telephone: (202) 895-6700

Fax: (202) 895-6750

http://www.austria.org/

 

AUSTRIA - HOLIDAYS

 

Under some collective labor agreements, holidays may include December 24th or 31st.  

 

AUSTRIA - LEAVE

Long-service leave: Most states provide for right to 13 weeks of leave after 15 years of qualifying service.

 

Maternity Leave: 16 Weeks - 100% of pay (paid by Social Security)

 

AUSTRIA - MINIMUM AGE

The minimum legal working age is 15 years. The Labor Inspectorate of the Ministry of Social Affairs effectively enforced this law. The Government has adopted laws and policies to protect children from exploitation in the work place. On December 4, the Government ratified International Labor Organization Convention 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labor.

The law prohibits forced and bonded labor by children, and such practices are not known to occur.

 

(Section 6.d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment, Austria- Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

AUSTRIA - MINIMUM REMUNERATION

There is no legislated national minimum wage. Instead nationwide collective bargaining agreements set minimum wages by job classification for each industry. The estimated accepted unofficial minimum gross income is €12,210 per year, and it provides a decent standard of living for a worker and family. Every worker is entitled to a variety of generous social benefits.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Austria - Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

AUSTRIA - REMUNERATION

ERI's Geographic or Salary Assessors are recommended sources for international remuneration covering 189 countries.

 

AUSTRIA - REPORT OF HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES (2001, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE)

Section 6 Worker Rights

 

a.      The Right of Association

 

Workers have the right to form and join unions without prior authorization, under general constitutional provisions regarding freedom of association. In practice trade unions have an important and independent voice in the political, social, and economic life of the country. An estimated 52 percent of the work force are organized into 13 national unions belonging to the Austrian Trade Union Federation (OGB), which has a highly centralized leadership structure. Association of national unions with the OGB is voluntary. Individual unions and the OGB are independent of government or political party control, although formal factions within these organizations are allied closely with political parties.

 

The right to strike is not provided explicitly in the Constitution or in national legislation; however, it is recognized universally in practice. Historically strikes have been comparatively few and usually of short duration. A major reason for the record of labor peace is the unofficial system of "social partnership" among labor, management, and government. At the center of the system is the Joint Parity Commission for Wages and Prices, which has an important voice on major economic questions.

 

The law prohibits retaliations against strikers, and the Government effectively enforces the law. In general legal disputes between employers and employees regarding job-related matters are handled by a special arbitration court for social affairs, which is part of the judicial system. Unions have access to the arbitration court.

 

b.      The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

 

Unions have the right to organize and bargain collectively. Almost all large companies, private or state-owned, are organized. Worker councils operate at the enterprise level, and by law workers are entitled to elect one-third of the members of the supervisory boards of major companies. Collective agreements covering wages, benefits, and working conditions are negotiated for each industry by the OGB with the National Chamber of Commerce and its associations, which represent the employers.

 

In cases of disputed terminations, the law obliges employers of enterprises with more than five employees to prove to a labor court that job dismissals are not motivated by antiunion discrimination. Employers found guilty of this offense are required to reinstate workers. Labor and business representatives remain in a longstanding disagreement over how to provide legal protection to employees against arbitrary dismissals in firms with five employees or fewer.

 

Typically legal disputes between employers and employees regarding job-related matters are handled by a special arbitration court for social affairs. The OGB is exclusively responsible for collective bargaining. The leaderships of the Chamber of Labor, the Chamber of Commerce, and the OGB are elected democratically.

 

There are no export processing zones.

 

c.      Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

 

The law prohibits forced or compulsory labor; however, trafficking in women for the purpose of prostitution remained a problem (see Section 6.f.).

 

In 2000 former forced laborers filed suit against Austrian companies that used forced labor provided by the Nazi Government. In October 2000, an agreement was signed between the Government, attorneys representing former forced and slave laborers, and representatives of foreign governments, providing compensation for former forced and slave laborers. In July the first payments from the $400 million (6 billion ATS) fund were sent to victims of forced and slave labor.

 

The Government prohibits forced and bonded labor by children, and there were no reports that such practices occurred.

 

d.      Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment

 

The minimum legal working age is 15 years. The Labor Inspectorate of the Ministry of Social Affairs effectively enforced this law. The Government has adopted laws and policies to protect children from exploitation in the work place. On December 4, the Government ratified International Labor Organization Convention 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labor.

 

The law prohibits forced and bonded labor by children, and such practices are not known to occur (see Section 6.c.).

 

e.      Acceptable Conditions of Work

 

There is no legislated national minimum wage. Instead nationwide collective bargaining agreements set minimum wages by job classification for each industry. The estimated accepted unofficial minimum gross income is €12,210 per year, and it provides a decent standard of living for a worker and family. Every worker is entitled to a variety of generous social benefits.

 

Although the legal workweek is 40 hours, more than 50 percent of the labor force is covered by collective bargaining agreements that set the workweek at 38 or 38 1/2 hours.

 

Laws regularly enforced by the Labor Inspectorate of the Ministry of Social Affairs provide for mandatory occupational health and safety standards. Workers may file complaints anonymously with the Labor Inspectorate, which may bring suit against the employer on behalf of the employee. However, this option rarely is exercised; workers normally rely instead on the Chambers of Labor, which file suits on their behalf. The Labor Code provides that workers have the right to remove themselves from a job if they fear "serious, immediate danger to life and health" without incurring any prejudice to their job or career, and the Government effectively enforces this law.

 

f.      Trafficking in Persons

 

There is no single law covering all forms of trafficking in persons, although several laws contain provisions that can be used to prosecute traffickers; however, trafficking in women for prostitution and domestic service was a problem. Austria is a transit and final destination country for women trafficked from Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and the Balkans; the women are trafficked into Austria and other western European countries, primarily for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Women also were trafficked from Asia and Latin America to Austria for domestic labor.

 

Most women were brought to Austria with promises of unskilled jobs such as nannies or waitresses. Upon arrival they were coerced or forced into prostitution. There also were cases of women who came to Austria explicitly to work as prostitutes but who then were forced into states of dependency akin to slavery. Most victims were in Austria illegally and feared being turned into authorities and deported. Traffickers usually retained victims' official documents, including passports, to maintain control over the victims. Victims of trafficking have reported being subjected to threats and physical violence. A major deterrent to victim cooperation is widespread fear of retribution, both in Austria and in the victims' countries of origin.

 

The Interior Ministry works at the national and international level to raise awareness of human trafficking. Federal police units addressing organized crime and sex crimes also focused on this issue. Although prostitution is legal, trafficking for the purpose of prostitution is illegal, and can

 

AUSTRIA - STANDARD WORKWEEK

Although the legal workweek is 40 hours, more than 50 percent of the labor force is covered by collective bargaining agreements that set the workweek at 38 or 38 1/2 hours.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Australia - Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

AUSTRIA - SOCIAL SECURITY

Social Security Office of International Programs:

 

http://www.ssa.gov/SSA_Home.html

 

AUSTRIA - TOTALIZATION AGREEMENT WITH U.S.

Effective Date of Agreement: November 1, 1991.

 

Coverage and Social Security Taxes:

 

For employees sent by an Austrian employer to work in the U.S. for five years or less, taxes and coverage fall to Austria. If the employees is sent to work in the U.S. for more than five years, was hired in the U.S., or is a U.S. citizen, taxes and coverage falls to the U.S.

 

Certificate of Coverage Request:

 

To establish an employee’s exemption from coverage under the U.S. Social Security system, the employer in Austria must request a certificate of coverage from the Austrian agency that collects the employee’s Austrian Social Security taxes, providing the same information required for a certificate of coverage from the employee’s Austrian Social Security taxes, providing the same information required for a certificate of coverage from the employee’s Austrian Social Security Insurance number should be shown rather than the U.S. number.

 

Minimum Credits Needed:

 

An employee without enough work credits to qualify for Austrian benefits, but with at least one year of coverage under the Austrian system, may combine Social Security credits from the U.S. and Austria to meet eligibility requirements.

 

Summary of Social Security Benefits:

 

Retirement benefits are payable at age 65 to men or 60 to women; benefits may be paid (under certain conditions) to men as early as age 60 or to women at age 55. Disability benefits are payable to employed persons if work capacity is reduced to less than 50%. Austria has no provisions for family benefits; however, a retired or disabled worker with children under 18 may receive a supplement. Survivor benefits to Austrian widows are generally payable at any age if she is not remarried; a widowers’ benefits equal 2/3 of widows’. Children up to age 18, or any age if disabled, receive survivor benefits. There is a one-time, lump-sum death benefit.

 

Additional Information: 

 

For specific information on the Austrian Social Security program, contact:

 

Hauptverband der Oesterreich

Sozialversicherungstraeger

Kundmanngasse 21

1020 Vienna

AUSTRIA

 

See Totalization Agreements